The initial impact of Hurricane Camille tended not to discriminate. Everyone who was hit was hit hard. But later…it wasn’t the hurricane that differentiated; it was the various responding relief agencies that made politically motivated decisions...

Mark M. Smith, Camille 1969: Histories of a Hurricane (2011)

From hurricanes to floods, to the toxic impact of nuclear explosions, while the initial impact is levelling, it is in the recovery effort that social, political and cultural distinctions rise to the surface, exposing prejudice and privilege alike.

Recovering Disaster is a three-day interdisciplinary, international conference that will examine historical and recent recovery efforts after natural and human-made environmental disasters. Going beyond the borders of an academic conference, we seek to engage across community outreach and social activism, as well as public policy. Topics include, but are not limited to:

The psycho-social impact of recovery on communities

The politics of recovery and governmental roles

Social privilege and recovery

Intersections of race, gender, class and culture in representations of recovery